034: Extracurricular Activities

Parent Driven Development Episode 034: Back to School and Extracurricular Activities for Kids 00:59 Welcome, Barrett Clark Barrett Clark is a data programmer, speaker and author of Data Visualization ToolKit. He is a longtime member of the Ruby community and a co-organizer of RailCamp South. Married for 22 years, Barrett and his wife have two teenage boys and a new dog. Ruby community Family: 2 highschool teenage sons (senior / sophomore) both in band. Parent advisors and past president to children’s band team 01:46 Extra curricular activities for kids Barrett’s son involved with band The parents get involved as well, to have the kids know that you value them and their interest carpools with fellow parents 08:25 Extra cirrculars taking up more time than school and work. How to deal? Helping kids see the importance of prioritizing (school, dating, work, band, etc) 12:20 Helping kids find their “thing” + Overly committing kids to activities to help them find a passion Signing your kids up for more activities Kids getting wiped out from over activity Teaching kids the importance of community at a young age 15:15 Help kids find their community Friends of similar interests and ideals Creating deeper bonds Certain activities lend towards a larger community than others. gymnastic - girls range from 12-18, while sports often limit to one age group 17:13 Becoming a part of your kids activities More time with your children Build your own community amongst the other parents involved with your kids Flexibility in being involved “part-time” 20:51 Uninvolved parents vs. involved parents Single parents Younger kids in school Parents helping each other get their kids to activities Making sure other kids have support if their parents aren’t there or too busy 25:45 Ways to keep busy parents in the loop: build greater community Film concerts, games, etc for distant family members or busy parents to help keep them involved Building the community feel past just teammates and classmates 27:28 Discussing the organization of extra cirrculars before getting involved Sit down and discuss with your child. what’s important to you most? will you have time for all these sports and clubs? Ask about the history of the organization and decipher if it’s the right fit for you and your child 30:02 How to deal with “that parent” + learning to manage other parents in your kids activities Don’t yell at refs Overly involved parent envy 32:14 The financial side Fundraisers - parents typically have to get involved as well Writing a check vs. spending the time on fundraisers Kids take responsibility (older kids) Parents budgeting for future extracurriculars for kids Non-negotiable extracurriculars for kids - kids choice vs. have-to’s Budgeted financial support for activity or sport 42:35 Genius / fail moments The volleyball team offers a weekend trial for students to try without commitment. #genius New favorite child when they take on your same activity Barrett plays catch up with son’s college applications - the struggles motivating your child and parent strategy #geniusfail Middle school back to school night, too many teachers and no quality time #failmoment Allison’s son on a mission to find Sukana bread… except she doesn’t know what it is #fail Kwu’s son’s first haircut goes awry #fail So Kwu stepped up, orders tools and cuts his hair at home now #genius Follow & Support Please follow us @parentdrivendev on Twitter or email us at [email protected]. Our website is at ParentDrivenDevelopment.com. Support us via Patreon and get access to our our Slack Community. Panel KWu Chris Sexton JC Avena Allison McMillan Josh PuetzSpecial Guest: Barrett Clark.